I just got my new Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer 7.1 sound card which I ordered from US last month. After listening to it for more than 4 hours, I must say I am really impressed by the sound quality. The sound card has a new feature called 24 bit Crystalizer. Creative claims this feature can repair the damage that MP3 and WMA compression causes and intelligently enhance high and low frequencies for cleaner music playback and more realistic movie sound. I thought of this a usual sales pitch by companies. Boy, I was wrong!!! It does work as it claims.

If you really want to feel the difference, you should listen to old ARR albums like Roja, Bombay, Kadhalan, Duet, Indian, Thiruda Thiruda etc... in this sound card with the Crystalizer turned on. It takes the songs to a whole new level. Those old songs sound like they were recorded only yesterday. I could hear tons of minute effects which I can swear I never heard before. Truly great. I also tried some movies with heavy action scenes. The gun shots and explosion sounds never sounded this great.

This sound card is a must buy for all music lovers, particularly ARR fans bcoz this card gives you the potential to explore his multi-layered compositions. Of course you need great speakers too. I have a 4200W PMPO Mercury 5.1 Speaker set.